Random thoughts on racing: whether horses or cars....
Horses: Barbaro, the Kentucky Derby winner, fractured his leg in two places during the Preakness. The injury is life-threatening. It was interesting how the announcers couldn't decide whether to downplay the life-threatening nature of it or make that the story. Lost in all this was a great run by the winner Bernardini.
The first indication this was serious was that Prado, Barbaro's jockey, was horribly upset. Reminded me of Dale Jr. running through pit road/ garage area after the Daytona 500 crash involving his father in 2001. It didn't feel right for all the wrong reasons.
On a related issue, how should the news cover injuries in racing (or any sport)? At times, they gloss over the issue, and other times seem fixated on it. For example, with Tony Stewart at Talladega in the Busch race a couple weeks ago, TV stayed with the car, even though it was upside down. Stewart was OK, but would they have done the same if he weren't?
Horsepower: The repaving at Lowe's coupled with the new hard tire was supposed to result in better racing. Nascar, for added aggravation, reduced the size of the fuel cell.
After last night's All-Star Crash Fest (a term stolen from Stewart), I'm not convinced the new surface, tire or fuel cell is going to mean less problems on track. Did it slow the cars and prevent "runs" on the car leading? No.
In fact, the smaller fuel cell caused more pit stops, which created more incidents on track getting through traffic to pitroad. Additionally, the track surface makes passing difficult (and treacherous), so the real race is on/off pit road, not on the track. All this happened with about 1/2 the number of cars we have next week. And these drivers are winners and veterans. Next week we add a few rookies and drivers saddled with some sub-par equipment.
The loose condition of the cars caused several sliding sideways incidents. Last year's 600 had 22 caution periods. I think this year could generate more...
The Nextel Open and the final segment of the challenge were boring - the lead car had checked out. There have been closer finishes at other tracks. Will age and weather on the surface help? Yes. But in the mean time, we've got what we've got.
Hornish: Sam Hornish has the pole position for next Sunday's Indianapolis 500. His teammate Helio Castraneves starts second, and defending Indy 500 champ Dan Wheldon completes the front row. Danica Patrick starts 10th, and Marco Andretti out qualified his Dad, Michael.
Hornish has not won the 500, but he drives for Roger Penske, who has won as an owner 13 times. Hornish desperately wants to win the 500. He has been thwarted by misfortunes of his own making and of chance. He once commented that he thought about leaving the IRL to race in Nascar, but he decided he'd rather be known as an Indy 500 winner. Hopefully Sunday is his day - as you have to love a guy who knows what he wants and passes up on more money and/or exposure to achieve his dream.
Hair: Was it me, or was Jeff Gordon sporting a five o'clock shadow after the All-Star crash fest? He's usually very clean shaven, and this wasn't very long or bad, but it was a bit more noticeable than usual. Is he lobbying for a razor deal, copying Stewart, or was the one mile drive from his shop to the track so time consuming he didn't have time to shave?
Hotheads: The All-Star race typically generates at least one feud. Last year, it was Joe Nemenchek and Kevin Harvick. This year, it looks like Tony Stewart and Matt Kenseth are back at it after their Daytona spat. Kenseth blamed Stewart for their crash, but conceeded that he may have caused the wreck. Stewart, after hearing Kenseth's remarks, proclaimed that Kenseth was "screwed up in the head" if he believed that Stewart caused the crash. One commentator believed Stewart cut a tire, but no one seems to have confirmed that, and I haven't heard that explaination since.
Things that make you go Hmmm: Lowe's and Jimmie Johnson have both re-upped their contracts with Hendrick Motorsports. Last time, Lowe's, Johnson, and Chad Knaus re-upped at about the same time. This time, Knaus said he had not discussed a contract extension with Hendrick. Hmmm....
This week, Tony Stewart announced that he was going to host a Sirius satellite radio show next year. His co-host will be Matt Yocum. For a guy who hates the media attention (he has a few blow ups/ camera incidents to prove it) and occasionally decries its invasion into his life, this seems like a big wet French Kiss with his sworn and hated enemy. Hmmm...
Kurt Busch donated $1 million to Victory Junction Gang Camp. This is commendable and will give many children the opportunity to attend the camp. Call me a skeptic, but why has it taken him so long to get on-board with this program? VJGC has been raising funds for several years (ie since 2001), and in fairness, Busch may have donated time, memorabilia, or money in the past. However, I do not recall seeing his name affiliated with it before now. I don't recall him being involved in charitable things period. Most other drivers have long standing foundations, or charities they donate to. Roush Racing, Busch's prior car owner, is a big proponent of Speedway Children's Charities. Why do I feel this is a PR gesture more than a heart felt one? Hmmm...
While on the charity front, Kyle Petty was voted in as the fan's choice for the All-Star event. Kyle's sponsor, Coca-Cola, promised to donate $250,000 to Victory Junction if Kyle was voted in. Additionally, Kyle promised to donate his winnings, which were around $125,000. Kyle's other sponsors were going to chip in additional pledges, so the total should be well over $400,000. Not bad for one night's work. Why didn't other drivers step up to the challenge? Hmmm...
Nascar has mandated that the teams utilize a "soft" bumper at Talladega this weekend. The rule change is a direct response to the complaints at Daytona about bump drafting.
As you will remember, Tony Stewart was the most vocal after the Bud Shootout that the bump drafting was out of control. Stewart believed that unchecked, bump drafting in the corners would result in the death of one of the drivers. In response, Nascar instituted a new rule that bumping a car from behind in the corners would result in a rough driving penalty. Infamously, Tony Stewart was the first penalty receipient when he bumped Matt Kenseth on the straight away by slamming together the sides of their cars and driving Kenseth into the grass. Kenseth received his own penalty for bumping Stewart at the end of pit road. Kyle Busch received a penalty at Daytona for rough driving as well.
In the intervening races, other drivers have been penalized for rough driving. The new rule probably won't limit Nascar's discretion in penalizing drivers who bump draft at Talladega, but it will increase the odds that the driver doing the bumping could damage his own car in the process.
In essence the rule removes or disallows some of the bracing that teams placed in the nose of the cars. Previously, the bracing would allow drivers to hit the back bumper of the car in front of them without damaging their own car. The "softer" bumper will crumple if it impacts another car. The crumpling could result in radiator damage, and will definitely result in a loss of aerodynamics (which is crucial at Talladega).
Why would a driver want to hit the car in front of him (or bump draft)? Cars at Daytona and Talladega can travel faster lined up together than any one car can travel by itself. In other words, a line of three cars will easily over take a lone car on the track. This is because of the restrictor plate that limits the horsepower via a limit on the fuel-air mixture going into the engine. The "draft" or stream of air behind a car (which is punching a hole in the air so to speak) allows the second car in line to pull up on the front car. A bump by that second car on the straight stretch will cause the front car to accelerate, which in turn speeds up the drafting cars. Bumping a car in the corner, when the steering wheel is not straight, leads to "Big Ones." Restrictor plates were required at Talladega and Daytona to slow down the cars after several horrific accidents (i.e. "The Big One").
Despite the new rule, I think drivers will find a way to bump draft. The softer bumpers will have some impact on the race, but the drivers will still be able to bump draft. The bumpers are not paper, and will survive some contact. Dale Jr. has already predicted that it will not stop bump drafting, and while Tony Stewart has endorsed the new rule as a step in the right direction, I don't think even he thinks it will eliminate bump drafting.
The more interesting question is which driver will adjust to the new bumper the quickest? The veterans have raced Talladega before the reinforced bumpers existed, while the new young guns have only raced during the bump drafting hey day. Dale Jr, Jeff Gordon, and Tony Stewart have figured out restictor plate racing and excell at it. Jimmie Johnson has created more than his fair share of Big Ones at Talladega, while Elliott Sadler can't seem to stay off his roof or on four wheels. Dale Jarrett won the last race at Talladega, and Mark Martin always looks good.
Given that it's Talladega, restrictor plate racing, and a new rule, anything can happen, and probably will.
At the final laps of the Bristol race last weekend, Matt Kenseth and Jeff Gordon had a dust up. At the end, Kenseth spun Gordon out of 3rd place. Gordon finished the race as the last car on the lead lap in 21st place.
After the cars were parked on pit road, Kenseth approached Gordon with up-turned palms - to apologize Kenseth said later. Gordon, still in his helmet, shoved Kenseth. Nascar fined him $10,000 for the shove. Kenseth also appologized to his team for losing another race. Kenseth has been leading in the closing laps of the race twice this year, but hasn't been able to close the deal.
The series heads to another short track this weekend - Martinsville. Gordon swept both races last year. The question is whether Gordon goes in with the most motivation or if Kenseth has the momentum to win.
Both drivers have, or will, claim to put Bristol behind them. But is that really human nature? And is it really wise to do so when it could motivate their teams? Why not use that angst over lower finishes than they could have had?
Kenseth was bumped out of the lead by Kurt Busch, the eventual winner, after he was held up by Dale Jarrett. Kenseth has led laps and has run well. He's run well enough to be in 1st in the drivers' standings.
Gordon was spun out of his spot by Kenseth. Gordon has been struggling with some of the tracks and his car, but appears to be on the verge of putting it all together - consistantly. He is in the top 10 in points.
But both could use something to truly elevate their game. Kenseth is running hot now, but was horribly inconsistant last year and had to dig his way out of a points hole before the chase. Gordon had major problems and turnover on his team last year, even though he won 4 races.
Maybe their Bristol Bash can be the spark that really starts their season on fire.
I'm not sure who was in charge of planning the Nascar Cup schedule this year, but they were brilliant to put another short track race after Bristol. Next week, the series heads to Martinsville for another short-fuse test session. There should be plenty of spats to go around. A brief review of who's mad at whom:
Kevin Harvick - Kurt Busch: Harvick's press conference this week was quite entertaining. He said he wished he could "whup" Busch's ####, and then said he shouldn't have said that. Harvick was refering to an accident at Atlanta where David Stremme bumped into Harvick who then sent Busch into the wall. Busch voiced his displeasure with Harvick (he may not have realized Stremme was involved) on his team radio. Harvick shot back at the press conference ant commented that Roger Penske would regret hiring Busch, which he followed by saying he shouldn't have said that. At the end of hte race, Busch beat Harvick to the line. It left me wishing there were about 30 more laps left to see what could have happened...
Kurt Busch- Matt Kenseth: Busch bumped Kenseth out of the way with about 5 laps to go and went on to win the race. Kenseth had been held up by Dale Jarrett who was battling to stay on the lead lap. Afterward, Busch thought his former teammate would be OK with the bump-and-run. Kenseth was unamused. His lack of amusement may have lead to...
Matt Kenseth - Jeff Gordon: After Busch bumped by, Kenseth continued to lose positions. Gordon was running in third and passed Kenseth. Kenseth tried to get the spot back and bumped Gordon out of the way. Gordon spun out, and finished as the last car on the lead lap (21st). Kenseth went over to Gordon on pit road after the race, which was to apologize according to Kenseth. Gordon, still in his helmet, shoved Kenseth. Penalties are sure to follow - but I'm sure Gordon's check will clear the bank.
Jeff Gordon-Martin Truex Jr.: Gordon may have still been steamed (and worried about) Truex, who he had a run-in with earlier in the race. Truex, a rookie, was a lap down and was not yielding to Gordon, who was on the lead lap. The situation was stacking up traffic, so Gordon bumped him out of the way. Truex spun and had to pit - but he returned to the track. Which led to...
Martin Truex Jr. - Jeff Gordon- Tony Stewart: After he was back on the track, Truex met up with Gordon. The two traded paint side by side in front of Stewart for a couple laps. Both nearly lost it a couple times. Apparently fed up with their antics and with traffic stacking up behind them, Stewart put his bumper to Truex, and sent him crashing into the wall. Truex seemed to blame Gordon for this, probably because....... well, Gordon's an easier target in a fist fight than Stewart would be.
Ryan Newman: Newman seemed to have a lot of problems on the track. He was trading paint, bumps, and probably hand gestures with about everyone on the track. At one point, it looked like he and Dale Jarrett may rumble, but nothing developed. I'm sure that he'll be mad at someone or someone will be mad at him given the donuts, scrapes and damage to his car.
Brent Sherman: Sherman was involved in a lot of spins. Most of them by himself, but I'm sure he had help on a few of them. I don't know that he took anyone with him, but his first experience at Bristol could not have been a fun time. Add to that the fact that he and his wife just had a son, Cooper, and are probably not sleeping well at night. Well, just wait for Martinsville.
Tony Stewart: My favorite quote of the race was from him. He said he ran the most patient race he'd ever run at Bristol - apparently despite the fact he punted Truex. Perhaps he was patient because he led nearly half the laps! I'm sure that someone will have Tony's number next week - maybe Johnson could blame him for the tire going flat in the first lap (Tony started the race too fast causing the tire to go flat? LOL), but then Johnson's got to be mad at Kenseth for shoving him into the wall early in the race. And doesn't Kenseth still owe Stewart for Daytona? Hmm...
Casey Mears: Mears had the car to beat - in essence, he PICKED the 500 winner. As Johnson's friend, it was natural to go with him and not Newman. Or was it because he's secretly a Rusty Wallace fan?
Kurt Busch: He had his ears pinned back in the off season? Does that make him more aerodynamic?
Jamie McMurray: A funny moment this weekend that most fans didn't see was when McMurray walked through the garage - fans were heard to exclaim "That's him? I thought he was blond."
Dale Earnhardt Jr: Can we stop the stories about his father's death? I know it has been 5 years, but does the guy have to answer these questions at every press conference? How many different answers could there be to the questions: "Do you miss your Dad? Do you think about him when you run here?"
Tony Stewart: Is it me or is he positioning himself as the successor to Dale Earnhardt? He's wearing Black, always quotable, aggressive on the track and not one to back down if he thinks he was wronged. Fans love him or hate him - very few are luke warm one way or another. And then there's his non-nascar driving. Wait a minute, maybe he's just trying to be AJ Foyt...
Matt Kenseth: Claims he was just "waving" to Stewart when he drove by. Note to Kenseth - a wave requires more than one finger...
Jeff Gordon: Why is it that when he and Stewart tangle, Gordon claims he was only 50% at fault? Wasn't this a near repeat of the Dover crash up last year? Didn't he learn not to slow down in front of Stewart or bad things will happen? Was he bored and wanted to go spend the rest of the race in the motor home/airplane with the girlfriend? And why weren't we promised a car crash war this time?
Elliott Sadler: Am I the only one who needs both a Virginian and a New England translater to listen to Sadler talk to his crew chief Tommy Baldwin?
Daytona races generate cash, crashes and controversy. This 500 was no different, and since I attended my first Daytona 500, here are my thoughts on what happened at the race.
Jimmie Johnson's Car: Yes, this team has a history of hovering their foot over the black areas of the rule book (think Dover, Las Vegas etc). And Crew Chief Chad Knaus tried a new trick and got caught. So, the team was penalized - the team kept the car, passed inspection and won the race. Knaus watched the 500 from home while his team celebrated all last night and most of today. It is expected that a harsher additional penalty will be levied tomorrow (Read - more weeks to get caught up on his at-home projects for Knaus).
It is interesting to me that the team got to keep the car - Nascar has taken cars for less. In 2003, at Texas, Tony Stewart's car was seized by Nascar because it didn't fit the back window X template. Stewart had to run a backup car - the car wasn't returned until much later - although nascar kept the sheet metal body (and still has it in its impound shop). Some speculate that Nascar suspected traction control, couldn't find anything and kept the car to save face. Rumor has it that Stewart and Zipadelli got the engine and chassis of the car back months later after they mentioned to a reporter that Nascar took the car to provide an engine to toyota. The reporter published the story, Nascar adamently denied it, and immediately turned over the majority of the car. Nascar similarly impounded Kyle Busch's busch car a couple years ago.
So, should Johnson have gotten to keep the car? Well, if the parts that were in violation were removed by Nascar, then why not? That is typically how the situation is handled (and the illegal parts are set out for the rest of the teams to get a look at). The complaints arose mainly because Johnson won - otherwise, this would be a non-issue. By the way, Johnson gets to take home approximately $1.5 million for this one race. Second place (Casey Mears still gets over $1 mil).
Tony Stewart's Daytona Daze: Smoke may be an appropriate nickname this week - Stewart was on fire about the bump drafting going on at the track. Apparently, the on-track antics during the Shootout continued to smolder in Stewart's mind, because he was not in the mood to put up with anything on Sunday (or Saturday). Stewart is an aggressive driver - given a half-way competent car, he'll find a way to get it to the front. On Sunday, Stewart had several near spins, passes through the grass, and bumps to and from other competitors. He was upset about the bumping and ####ing that was going on.
First, he had an incident with Gordon. Gordon slipped up the track in front of Stewart and hit him. Stewart had given him room, but the room stops at the concrete wall - Gordon (or his spotters) lack of clearance of Stewart's car damaged 2 potentialy winning cars. After that, Stewart had problems with McMurray and Kenseth. Kenseth bumped Stewart and Stewart then drove him down on the grass, resulting in a penalty for Stewart. Kenseth then retaliated by driving up on Stewart as they left pit road. Kyle Busch was later penalized for rough driving to Stewart - after Stewart complained to his crew chief about it.
Was Stewart wrong to run Kenseth onto the grass? Yes. Was Kenseth wrong to retaliate? Yes. Could there be more penalties tomorrow? Yes. Will this generate more drama for the next race thereby increasing ratings? Absolutely. I mean, did you know that Matt Kenseth had this much personality, let alone a temper? First, he names his cat after the lead singer in Metallica, and now picks a fight with Stewart? He may actually get an interview next week instead of Junior! So much for just being a quiet cheesehead from Wisconsin... Throw in the Kurt Busch-Jamie McMurray feud and things get really interesting.
Note to Nascar: Why not run a short track race immediately after Daytona - that way, the drivers can make things look "accidental" and, heck, we're going to have a car crash war regardless what track is next - why not do it when we expect we'll be wrecking the cars anyway, and are only driving 60-80 mph?
